Machine for riveting buttons on cloth



NITED' STATES PATENT Strien'. y

WILLIAM J. GoaDoN AND EDMUNDD. GILBERT, oF PHILADELPHIA,

PENNSYLVANIA.

Specification forming partI of Letters Patent No. 46,660, dated March'7, 1865.

To all whom t may col/1.067711:`

Be it known that We, WILLIAM J. GORDON and EDMUND D. GILBERT, ofPhiladelphia,

`in the county of Philadelphia and State of Pennsylvania, have inventedne7 and useful improvements in machines for riveting buttons upon clothand other materials f and pert'orating and inserting rivets inthe sameand we do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exactdescription thereof', which `will enable others skilled in .the art tomake and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,forming part of this specification, in Which- Figure lis an elevationot' a machine which contains our improvements as seen from the left-handside. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the same, as seen from theright-handside. Fig. 3 is a plan of the same as seen from below. Fig. 4is a plan of the table of the machine Without the parts which aresupported upon it. showing the plate min position. Fig. 5 is alike view,the plate m being removed. Fig. 6 isaview ot' a portion ofthehcohedrconnectingrod which works the hammer C. Fig. 7 is a detailed viewof the needle and its case. Fig. Sis a sectional elevation of the hopperand some ofthe adjacent parts. Fig. 9- is a plan view of the bottom ofthe plate m. Figs. 10 and 11 are detailed vieWsot a button after ithas/been attached to a piece of cloth androne of the rivets. Figs. 12,13,14, and 15 are detailed views of different parts ofthe machine.

Similar letters of reference indicate like parts.

Our invention consists in the construction and arrangement ot' certainlmechanical devices for riveting buttons to cloth or other material,whereby the cloth is pierced to receive the body of the rivet, and thevarious movements and opera-tions necessary'to feed the rivet and thebutton and insert the rivet in the cloth and through the'center of thebutton and clinch them together are performed automatically. l

l The bed-plate A of our machine, which supports the various partsthereof, is to be xed to a bracket or in a frame, so as not to obstructthe movement of those parts. A supporting'- standard, B, rising from theplate A,1sustains the various devices which are located above it in theseveral positions seen in Figs. land 2. rllhe arm of thecli'nching-hammer G is 4fixed vby a collar and set-screw upon a shortshaft, which rotates in bearings in the highest part ofthe standard l, ashorter arm, .02, onl the samel shaft extends in an opposite direction,its end being bent up slighty, -as seen in the detailed view giventhereof in Fig. 12. A spring, D, bolted to the back of the standard,.presses continually downward upon the arm of the hammer. A shaft, F,which has its bearings on the standard in front of the hammer-shaft,carries a cam-plate, E, on one of its rvends, Whose cams, three innumber in this instance, are set at equal distance .apart on'itsperiphery. A pin, e2, is set on' the outer surface ot each of the threecams, Which strikes against the short arm d of a jointed lever, which isjointed loosely to the projecting armof a cross-bar, a., which connectsthe sliding rods X and A. Therod X slides in *a bearing made t'orit inthe projection A3 below the bed, and it should have a longitudinalmovement sufiicient to' bring' it against the shorter end of a lever, H,Whose longer end strikes against a sliding` bar, A4, which slides-inWays ymade for it in the upper part of the solid block U on a line whichcoincides with that in which the sliding-bar A moves, andwhich passesdirectly under the needle. The barr A4l is brought out and heldagainst-the lever H after each inward movement by means of an ellipticalspring, G', which is secured at its center to thel head ot' the bar by aset-screw, and at one of its 'ends to the face ot' the block U', so thatits tension shall bein an outwarddireetion. The inner end of ihe'barAtis flattened and carved out,

as seen in Fig. 4, to the shape of halfa circle, of a size to tit thebody of the rivetto be used. The inner end of the sliding bar'A isformed in a similar manner, and both these bars vare-intended to slidetoward eachother at the same time, meeting each other directly beneaththe needle, at which time they will grasp the body ot' the rivet betweentheir curved ends, as hereinafter explained.

A rectangular opening, A, is made in the bed-plate A, which receives andiscovered by a pla-tef'm, shown `bottom-'side 'uplin Fig. 9. The objectof this openin g is to get access to the channel to setthe rivet in caseit gets upset and to get at .the Working parts in that Vchine below theplate m.

portion of the machine, and to see that the rack, when a rack is used,starts right, the part of said plate which ts within said opening beingdeeper or of greater thickness than the outer ends, which are made thin,so as to lay upon the surface of the bed-plate, as seen in Fig. 4. Thesolid or thick part of the plate m is planed off, so as to be only about`one-half its original thickness between the shaded line 6 and its side7 ,Fig 9. Two transverse slots,

q', cut across the thickest portion of the plate,

extend to the line 6, and a needle hole, p, iS drilled through the platemidway between the slots q'. A flat spring, n, Fig. 4, is' secured uponthe top of the plate m, having at its end a blunt pin, O, which projectsdownward through a hole drilled through the plate. :This

`pin O must coincide with the holes h h of the rivet-feeding rack 'T'.which traverses the ma- The rack T' is made of the form shown in Figs.3,4,. and 5, which show it in plan view from above and beneath, and alsoin Figs. 1 and 2, which .show it in section. It passes beneaththebed-plate in its movement and` slides upon the, block U',-

which is planed oi' to make room for it. Its teeth.e11gage with theteeth of a pinion, B', fixed on a shaft, B3, Fig. 3, which hangs down.from the bed-plate. The lower side of the pin ion has a ratchetfwheel,C', cut upon it. The position of the pinion on the machine is such that`its teeth will engage with the raekwhich traverses in front of it, whileits ratchet C' will be engaged by a spring-pawl, 8, Fig. 5, fixed uponthe upper side of the sliding bar A', whose path is beneath and at rightangles with the rack. This pawl is shown in dotted outline in Fig. 5.

The rack'is in practice laid upon a separate table, attached or broughtup to the machine at the level of the rack, so as to confine the rivetsin their receptacles h, while the rack moves atrossthe machine.

The rivets are supplied to the rack after each traverse through themachine by removing the rack from'the machine, laying it over upon itsface, and insertinga rivet ,in each hole h, which holes are countersunk,as shown in the drawings, to receive the `heads-of the rivets, so thattheyshall'lie flush fwith the lower face ofthe rack. Allight plate orstrip of any suitable material is next laid and held upon the rack, soas to cover the heads ofthe rivets, and the rack is thenl turned overupon ihe table, from which it is to be fed into the machine. The ends ofthe rack may be dovetailed, so as to tit with the ends of other racks,in order that as one is nearly fed through the machine another may bejoined to its end, and thusa continual supply of rivets be provided.

'An endless belt or chain can be substituted for the racks, whichsubstitution can easily be made by any well-skilled :mechanic withoutfurther description. When the cross-head a ispushed inward, the pawl 8of the bar A' engages with the ratchet-wheel C', thereby turning thepinion B', which causes the rack to adany'backward motion. advanced sothat one of its holes It is brought vance across the machine a distanceequal to the distance between its holes h, the ratchet, pinion, and'rackbeing made and adjusted so as to produce that result.

A spring-detent, D', secured to the adjacent side of the block U', holdsthe ratchet against When the rack-has over the channel q, which is cutin the block U', and extended through A2 to make a path ,forthe sliding`bar A', the rivet contained in that hole. h is free to fall into thechannel, and it is assisted in so doing by the tpressure of the pin o,which'at the same instant presses upon the point of the rivet throughthe upper side of the hole in the rack, the object being to prevent therivet from sticking fast and remaining in the rack at thetime it shouldfall into the channel g. The head, beingihe heaviest part of the rivet,will be found resting on the .bottom of the channel and its shank willproject upward, so as to lie di.- rectly in the path of the curved barA', which is so adjusted as to come in contact with and embrace one sideof the rivet justabove its head as the rivet thenlies. The continuationof the advance of the bar A' will push the rivet along the channel untilit' comes directly beneath the needle U, at which time the other side ofthe shank of the rivet will be met and embraced by the curved end of thesliding bar A4. Y

Thebutt'on-hopper Q is located infront of the punch M, being secured tothat part of the standard which furnishes a socket for the needle andthe punch. The hopper is open at top, and it has a slot (not shown) downits front to enable the operator to note the order in which the buttonslie.' The hopper opens at bottom into a horizontal channel, V, in whicha slide, W, is moved backward and forward by a pin projecting upwardfrom the end of a-bent arm, W27, attached `to a sliding rod,X. A spiralspring, W', is secured on this rod between a collar on its end andone ofthc bosses which carry it, and the rod is thereby held so that the slideW will be drawn forwardin its channel, where it will remain in front ofand on a level 'with the lowest button in the hopper until it is drawninward by means of the rod X, as hereinafter described.

The bottom of the channel is slotted longitudinally to allow theholding-pin of the bent arm Wvz to travel with the slide. This slot iscontinued across the bottom of the hopper and along an. extension ofthechannel behind the hopper, and along the bottom to a `point beyond thecenter of a receiving-chamber, L', which is formed in the bottom ot thepunch' stock K, and which in one position of the stock forms acontinuation of the channel V. The position of the slide W in thechannel V is adjustable by means of two jam-nuts, which secure its. armin rod X, so as to enable the same -slideto operate difterent-sizedbuttons. The hopper Q is made to receive different-sized buttons bysliding a hopper case ot' smallerdiameter within the outer case of thehopper Q, thereby enabling us to use various-sized buttons with the samehopper arrangement.

The rod X is drawn backward bythe nieveinent ofthe lever H, Fig. 1,through the agency ot' the slidingdog1(l,which slides up and down inslot, 13, cut in the arm ofthat lever below its fulcrurn. When the lowerlimb of the lever His moved backward, its dog 10 comes against theshoulder 11 ot the rod X, thereby drawing the rod X and its slide Wbackward, the adjustments being so made as that the inner end of theslide shall carry the lowest button in the hopper into the extension ofthe channel V behind the hopper, and beyond it into a chamber, L, formedin the bottom ofthe punch-stock,the contour of which is to be such asthat the perforated button, which is to re ceive the rivet, and is madeconcave on its face side, immediately` around the perforation, thecorresponding lower side being convex, and the rim or edge of the buttonbeing flat, as shown in Figs. l0 and l1, will lie in position to releivethe body of the rivetfrom below. So soon as the button is placed in thechamber L', the tube or casing J4, which incloses the punch M, is forceddown by means of the curved end 2S ot' thc lever H, which bears downupon handle lli, projecting from the collar N ot' the casing J', untilit rests lightly upon button, its face being convex in form, so as totit with the concavity ofthe button around its rivet-hole, so as tocenter the button and insure its being and remaining in position toreceive the rivet. The easing J' moves within the punch-stock X. Whenthe button is in position in the chamber L', and the lower end, lil', ofthe casing J' has been brought down upon it, a continuation ot' thepressure upon the handle 16 will cause the punch stock K to descenduntil it meets the rivet-carriagei t below, or, rather, the cloth uponit, which at that time should be in position beneath the chamber L',with a rivet projecting through it, as will be hereinafter explained.The button in that case will pass over or receive the body (f the rivetwithin the rivet-hole, when the descent of the hammer C upon the punch Mwill clinch the rivet in the concavity of the button by a single blow.The cloth,being next moved toward the front, draws the button out ot theopen side ot' the chamber L', when the punch-stock may be released, thespiral spring L about it serving to raise it again, so as the chamber Lwill coincide with the channel V. The tube J will also be raised bymeans ofthe spiral spring K' about it so soon as its handle 16 isreleased. The punch is also carried upward, being supported within thetube J' by means of its shouder, as seen in Fig. 8, so that it shall not`descend below a certain limit to be iixed by the maker. The punch isshown in Fig. 8 as projecting below the chamber L', being forced down bythe weight of the hammer. When the hammer does not rest upon it, it, aswell as the tube J', will be raised by the spring K' above the chamberL', so as to clear it for the entrance of a button from the hopper. Thetube J and punclrstock are to be guided by key-seats, or by anyequivalent devices, so as to prevent them from rotating.

The needle U, fr perforating the. cloth, 1s located behind the punch,and is secured in a needle steek or holder, R, which slides ver ticallywithin a tube, l?, which latter slides vertically in a socket made forit in the standard. The lower part of the tube P has a smalllr tube, T,secured in its end, which tube T incloses the needle, and is slottedthroughout its Whole length., as seen in Fig. 7. When the needle and thetube T are in their normal position, the lower end ol' the tube restsupon a Shoulder formed on the shank of the need'e, its shank being ot'smaller diameter above the shoulder than it is at the shoulder, so asthat the slitted tube, which is to be made ot' steel or other materialwhich has suitable strength and elasticity", will close around the shankof the needle above the shoulder. The diameter of the tube T externally,when it is in that condition, its slit being closed, will be or is to bethe same as the diameter ot' the needle at its shoulder. A cross-head,19, rigidly attached at the top ot' the needle bar E, extends to andembraces a standard, S, fixed inthe standard B. The cross-head 19 canslide upon the standard, a nut, 20, preventing it from becomingdisconnected, and a spi-ral sprin g about the standard pressing upagainst .the cross-head 19, in order to maintainthe needle in theposition shown in the drawings, ready to be forced down through thecloth by the rotation ot' the cam-plate. The cross-head 19 is of theshape shown in Fig.,13, its branch 21 embracing and sliding upon aguidingstandard, Q4, and a recess, 22, being cut in its front to receivea boss on the cross head 18 of the tube P, which'boss in the normalpositien of the tube and needlebar rises flush with the cross-head 19.The boss may be dispens d with, and the cam be allowed' to fall from onecrosshead upon the other. The cross-headlS is rigidly attached to thetube P, and its arms embrace and slide upon guiding-standards Q4, fixedoneither side of thetube. Spiralsprings about thesev standards, bearingup against the cross head 1S, tend to keep the tube l? in its normalposition close up against the crosshead 19. In this example of ourinvention we have relied upon the force ot' the spiral springs to givelimits to the descent ot the needle and of the tube T; but it will bebetter to limit their movements by stops, which may be located in anysuitable position, either within the bearing on which they move or uponthe outside, so as to be struck by the heads 18 and 19, which anycompetent mechanic can easily arrange without further explanation. Theneedle and the tube are driven downward by means of the cam-plate E,whose cams strike successively upon their cross-heads, irst strikingupon the cross-head 19 and driving the,

needle-bar downward, which carries the tube P with it. lhis descentcontinues until the needle has pierced the cloth lying upon therivet-carriage 1',when thefurthcr rotation of the cam-plate carries thetoe of the cam past the head 19 upon the boss of the head 18, wherebytheslitted tube T is forced downward overthe shoulder of the needle U andthrough the perforations just made by the needle in the cloth and thehole j in the 4rivet-carriage t" d until it reaches the rivet held inthe channel 9 between the rounded ends of the sliding-bars A A4, whichit seizes between its elastic sides. So soon as the shank of the rivethas been seized by the tube T the bars A A4 are released and allowed tospring back ready for another advance. The edge of the boss next to thecam plate is inclined or rounded off, so as to aid the camto pass overit readily as it continues its rotary movement. So soon as it has passedthe boss the springs on the standards Q4 will elevate the tube T, whichreturns through the rivetcarriage it and through the cloth until thehead of the rivet strikes against the edge 4of the holej,

and is thereby detached from the mouth of the tube T, which continuesits ascent until it again closes around the needle-shank above itsshoulder. The needle in its descent goes through the hole j in therivctcarriage@ z', the

plates i of which are gradually forced apart by the entrance of theneedle, which is of tapering form from its shoulder to its point, untilits shoulder has passed a little way below the hole, thereby also makinga passage for the tube T, which at that instant will be forced by thecam down over the shoulder of the needle, its expanding sides separatingthe jaws of the rivet-carriage t" z' still farther apart. So soon as thecam slips od' the head 19 onto the boss the needle is free to be drawnup by the spiral' spring on the standard S. When the tube T rises, afterthe cam has passed ol' its head 18, and brings the rivet up between thejaws i vl, thesejaws spring shut, and hold the body of the rivetprojecting through the hole j and through the cloth. So soon as the tubeis withdrawn therefrom these jaws are moved from beneath the needle td aposition beneath the punchstock, bringing with them the cloth, whichhasthe body of the rivet projecting through it, and which is ready now forthe descent of the button and the operation of the punch.

The jaws of the rivet-carriage are flat pieces of metal, a hole,j, beingmade in them (half in each jaw) at the line of their meeting anddirectly in the path of the needle when the jaws are in a state of rest.at its outer edge to vertical pieces of steel or steel springs F F,which pass down through slots q q in the block U, which slots reach froma line running across the path of the needle to a line running acrossthe path ofthe punch. The springs F are secured beneath the block E toasolid piece of metal, F2, which is perforated to receive a guiding-pin,Uf, reachin g down from the block Ef, so that the rivet-carriage mayhave vertical play. Y

Euch is connected The springs as they pass down to their block F2 arelet into mortises cut in the edges or sides of the sliding block Ef, sothat the rivetcarriage will be carried along with it in its movement-This block slides in ways made for it in the bottom of the block U',which in this example are dovetailed, (not shown in the figures.) butwhich can be made in any proper manner. The block E is moved to and froby means of a sliding rod, Z, which slides in bearin gs f f on the lowerside of the bed-plate, its movements being adjusted as to their extentby collars screwed upon a thread cut on the rod, whichcome in contactwith the bearingsff. These adjustments are required to bring thecarriage in its movements beneath the center of the needle and button.

A spiral spring, conned on the outer end of the rod by means of acollar, W", and one of the bearin gs f f, returns the block E to itsposition in Fig. 3 so soon as it is released from the force which droveit forward. I The collar Wftakes the shape ot' an elbow, (see Fig. 3,)which extends across the slot `2 in the bedplate, in order to be in theway of the lever Y, which is pivoted to the standard B above and reachesdown through the slot 2. When the handle of this lever is moved outward,the rod Z and block E will be driven toward the front of themachine,carrying the rivet-carriage and cloth and rivet to the desired positionbeneath the punch. The top of the bedplate at this point'is made with adat or concave bed of 'a size to fit the head of the rivet, and on eachside of this dat or concave bed this part of the bed-plate is roundedoff or inclined, as seen at s in Figs. 4 and 5 and in Fig. 14, so as topermit the projections 27 in the bottom of the punch-stock to drive therivetcarriage downward, and thereby open its jaws wide enough to releasethe rivet and allow it to slip from between the jaws.

The jaws i i, on their under sides, are made of the shape seen in Fig.14, rounded or inclined, so as that a gentle blow or pressure will forcethem to slide over the curved sides s, and the jaws to be thereby forcedapart, `as above stated. A

To the opposite end of the shaft F from that on which the cam issecured, is keyed a ratchet, G, whose teeth, three in number in i thisexample of our invention, answer to the number of the cams on thecam-plate, and are situated in or-about the radial planes extending fromthe center of the shaft to the several cams. A lever, H, is hung looselyupon the same shaft outside of the ratchet. This lever extends above theline of the shaft, s'o as to be ,formed into a. handle above, or so asto meet a connecting-rod or other device for oprating it, and below theshaft it reaches nearly down to the bed-plate, having a short arm, 26,.which extends laterally outward. across the slot 3 in the bed plate inorder "to receive a connecting-rod from below to cause it to vibrate, ashereinafter explained, and also inward toward the standard B, so as tostrike the arm 14. The connecting-rodl (not shown) is secured thereon bya nut, 24. A frictionroller, 25, is set on the arm 26 inside of thelever, which, when the lever has got to the by driving the rod Z andrivet-carriage block E' forward, as before explained.

The lever H has a pin, 10, sliding in a slot, 13, in a position thereonthat will in the beginning of its vibration to the left strike againstthe vertical side 11 of the sliding-rod X, carrying it along with it,and thereby feeding the button. Whenthe leverH has vibrated to such adistance to the left that the pin 10 has reached the top of the straightside 11, the pin will slide over the top of the side 11 and be free tomove up and along the slot 13 and release the rod X, which willimmediately be drawn to its original position by its spiral spring W'.`On the return movement of the lever H, its pin 10 rides upon theinclined -face 12 of the rod X and upward within its slot 13, to permitit to take the position again in front ofthe vertical slide 11 of therod, ready to feed another button.

An elbow-lever, I, is pivoted to the standard B in such a position asthat its stouter arm will reach and act upon the teeth 15 of the ratchetG. Its longer arm, 14,'extending downward, as seen in Fig. 1,lies'in thepath of the friction-roller or pin (not seen) formed by the extension ofthe arm 26, which, on the backward or return movement of the lever H,strikes the arm 14, and thereby causing the short armor pawl of lever Ito draw the ratchet and its shaft F around in the direction of itsprevious movement. The camplate, being keyed to the shaft F, is alsothereby moved to an equal distance. This forward rotation of the cam isnecessary, because, as we use the same shaft for working the cam and thelever, and the lever moves through only one-fourth, more or less, of acomplete circle in its movement from right to left, the cam, which isdriven by means of the spring-pawl I' of the lever acting against theratchet-teeth 15, only makes one-fourth of a complete revolution. Thisis sufficient to enable it to perform its work on the needle and itstube T, but not sufficient to bring it in position to act on them whenthe pawl l' next acts on its shaft. The ofce of the pawl I therefore isto rotate the shaft with its ratchet and cam until they have completedtheir revolution, when the ratchet will be in position to receive thepawl I' on the next vibra-tion of the lever H, and the cam will be inposition to strike the crosslheads 19 and 18, as before explained. Thedetent J, xed to thestandard B, rests continually upon the periphery ofthe ratchet-wheel G', its office being to catch under one of the teethof the ratchet when the lever has completed its movement to the left andis ready to return, so as to hold the ratchet and the cam-shaft andprevent their backward rotation. At every partial rotation of thecam-plate one of its dogs, e2, strikes against the end d' of the leverd, which has its fulerum at e' on the standard B. This lever worksthrough the slot 1 of the bedplate, and drives the rod X and the bar A'simultaneously, as before stated.

The outer end, C2, of the hammer-arm curves upward, as seen in Fig. 12,in order to permit the hook Q' of a reciprocating bar, N', to draw upon.the arm in a direction which shall be constantly vertical.

The hook (shown in part in Fig. 6) is connected to a bar, N', and thelatter is connected below to a treadle, (not shown,) and is to be heldupright in guides, so as to move in a vertical path in such a positionas that its outer inclined face, 29, shall, when the bar is ascending,come against the side of the end C2 of the hammer-arm. The bar and hookare hinged at P', and the spring O' holds the hinge closed, allowing itto yield when the inclined face strikes against the arm O2, so as tocatch it again under the hook ready for another movement. Thisreciprtcating hook after each descent is carried upward immediately by acounter-balance arrangement (not shown) of ordinary construction, sothat its jointed hook shall again spring over the hammer-arm.

The operation is as follows: The movement of the lower part of the leverH from its extreme position on the right (which is not shown thedrawings) causes the pawl l' to engage the ratchet-wheel G, and therebyrotate the cam, and by means of one of its pins, e2, striking the leverd' d, moving the sliding bar'A' and feed a rivet (when a rack or belt isuscd to feed the rivets) into the channel 9 in the path of the ends qofthe sliding bars A' and At. The further vibration of the lever H causesthe rod X to draw the slide IV inward and feed a button into the chamberL', about at which time one 'of the cams of cam-plate E has depressedthe cross-head 19 and 18, and thereby brought the needle down throughthe cloth, which must previously be laid in position over therivet-carriage. The continuation of `the pressure of the cam upon thecross-head 18 forces the slitted tube down into the channel 9, over therivet, which has been by that time brought forward by the sliding bar A'and has been seized upon its opposite side by the sliding bar A4. Whenthe cam has passed the cross-heads of the needle-bar and the tube, theyrise successively to their original positions. The lever H, havin greleased the buttonfeeding slide continues its movement until it strikesthe lever Y, which moves the rivetcarriage, and this carriage, holdingnow the rivet brought up by the needle-tube between its jaws, is carriedforward beneath the punch-` stock, when the continued rotation of thelever H brings its upper end, 28, down upon the arm 16 of thepunch-stock, and thereby carries the stock down upon the rivet-carriage,openv ing its jaws by the pressure of its projections 27, so as torelease the rivet, and causing the button to pass over the rivet whenthe hammer descends upon the punch, and thereby clinches the rivet inthe concavity of the button. The cloth is then withdrawn with the buttonriveted to it. The lever I, on the return ofthe lever H, causes thecam-plate and ratchet to complete one-third of a revolution, the detentJ having meanwhile prevented any baclrward motion ofthe shaft F. Whenthe driving-lever I' and its spring bear lightly upon the smoothperiphery of the ratchet-wheel, there is little or no tendency in thecam-shaft to be rotated backward, and in that case the detent J can beleft oft' the machine.

The hopper-case Q receives cases like Q, which rest within it, beingvinserted from above. When itis necessary to feed buttons of smallersizes than those that fit the capacity of the outer case, we place aspring, D, upon the hammer-arm, so as to give energy andforce to itsblow, and thus avoid the necessity of using a heavier and unwieldyhammer.

The machine can be operated by hand through the handle of the lever H,the hammer being operated by the foot of the workvman through a treadlefast to the connectingrod N' 5 or' it may be driven by power in anyordinary manner by connecting-rods and gearing in the way machines areusually driven.

We claim as new and desire. to secure by Letters Patent- 1. In machinesfor attaching` buttons to cloth or other material, feeding the rivet andthe button, perforating the material, placing the rivet therein,advancing` the cloth and rivet to the button, and uniting them byriveting by mechanical devices constructed, arranged, and operating as awholel substantially as described.

2. The needle and its tubular casing, T, constructed and operatingsubstantially as described. V

3. The jointed hook Q', with its inclined face 29, for operating thehammer in its connection with the button-riveting machine, substantially as described.

4. The combination of the punch-stock K,

casing J', punch M, and spring K', con- 8. The rivet-carriage,constructed substantially as above described.

9. The hopper, in combination with the channel V, chamber L', and thefeeding-slide W, substantially as described.

10. Operating the punch-stock by means of the upper arm of the lever H,substantially as described.

11. Operating the botten-feeding slideWby means of its sliding rod X, orits equivalent, and the sliding pin 10, substantially as described.

12. The combination of the ratchet G, bent lever I 14, and lever Hsubstantially as de'- scribed.

13. Operating the pawl Iy on the return movement of the lever H in themanner and by means substantially as described.`

14. The crossheads 18 and 19, constructed as described, in combinationwith the stand'- ards S S and 24 and cam E, for the purpose described. y

15. Operating the cam by means of the pawl I' on the lever H, and theratchet G on the cam-shaft, substantially as described.

16. Operating the rivetcarriage by means of the lever H and the lever Y,substantially as described.

W'ILLIAM J. GORDON. EDMUND D. GILBERT.

Witnesses:

DAVID GILBERT, JAMES GETLER.

